Philter
by Erava
Summary: Cloud is wandering the streets of Midgar on his 16th birthday, thinking about his unrequited love for Sephiroth, when a fortune teller gives him a love spell. Could it be real? Yeah, I suck at summaries. Happy Birthday, Cloud! 8/19


HAHAHA, I'm back, and _this _is Cloud's birthday fic! (I think it's more of a whole one-shot than it is a drabble, but it's a special occasion, so whatever. Really, the only reason it's posted here is because it's based off the word of the day. It's also posted separately, and on my LiveJournal, but that doesn't matter too much, does it?) So, so sorry for the delay! A combination of writer's block, two back to back vacations, the upcoming school year, and my muse, who happens to go by the name of Vincent Valentine, being very, very, VERY uncooperative. So sorry!

Anyhow, here's your chapter, hope it brings you joy and pudding! Note that pudding will fully restore both HP and MP, as well as cure any status ailments.

* * *

**Philter** \FIL-tur\, _noun_:  
**1.** a potion or charm supposed to cause the person taking it to fall in love.  
**2.** A potion or charm believed to have magic power.

_Transitive verb_:  
**1.** to enchant or bewitch with or as if with a magic potion or charm.

* * *

**Rating: **T/PG13 (Because I'm still too chicken to actually write a lemon. Did you know that you're not allowed to? Besides, I'm a minor. Maybe when I turn 18, the thought of writing actual yaoi won't make me twitch.)

**Pairing: **Sephiroth/Cloud

**Word Count: **5,062 (I died typing this, I swear.)

**Warnings: **Naughty words and love of the kissing kind. Also kinda AU-ish.

**Summary: **Cloud, Sephiroth, a fortune teller, and a love spell. What chaos shall they wreak?

**Dedication: **To Cloud Strife. Happy Birthday! I never did get used to you being a minor character in both Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core. Your few cameos were all fangirl-squeal-worthy, however. -

**Disclaimer: **I do not, in any way, shape or form, claim any of these characters as my personal property. I gain nothing but the satisfaction of writing, and the warm, fuzzy glow I get from reviews. I don't own them people. I don't even own Levine, the scary secretary/assistant of Sephiroth. He belongs to Amarissia, who, by the way, is amazing. After you're done with this, you should go read her stories. Shameless author promotion, right here. But seriously, after you're done, go hence and read Amarissia's fics. You'll love them.

* * *

Zack Fair, the second to the world's most celebrated war hero, pranced (that's right, people, _pranced_) into the General's office, a huge grin plastered across his features. Upon stopping in front of his best friend's desk, he immediately assumed a much more somber expression that was akin to the one Sephiroth wore right then, though his eyes were still alight with glee. Sephiroth noted all this without glancing up from his reports, though his left eye started twitching ever so slightly. What was Zack up to this time?

He soon found out when his second opened his mouth to speak. In a very serious monotone, once again akin to that of the General's, he said, unusually eloquently, "It has come to the attention of both me and several others that you have been unnaturally stressed and distracted as of late."

The twitch spasmed once, then returned to its original state. "And what makes you say that, Zackary?" Hmm, reported monster sightings increasing in the Nibel area. Odd.

The dark-haired man broke his stern façade and cracked into a huge grin that Sephiroth knew only Zack was capable of. "Aw, come on, Seph! You know what I mean! I mean, I prance in here, and you don't even look up! You usually threaten to get your scary secretary to throw me out if I don't walk with some decorum. Plus, you got a really easy equation wrong on one of those calculations. And it wasn't some little mistake that I'd make either. It was totally off, like you were thinking completely different numbers! AND you've started doodling. You never doodle. Like, _ever_. So, either the world is coming to an end, and you have yet to tell anyone, or you're just stressed and distracted." Zack nodded, seemingly proud of his infallible logic.

Sephiroth closed his eyes to control the ever growing twitch that only his second could bring out and sighed under his breath. After a few seconds, he responded. "Firstly, in your constant presence, it is very easy to become both stressed and distracted. Secondly, Levine is an _assistant_, not a secretary."

Zack scoffed. "The guy answers your phone calls, orders your files, sorts your mail, guards your office like it's a holy temple, and pretty much worships the ground you walk on. He's a fucking secretary." His expression suddenly became accusatory. "Hey, no changing the subject here!"

Sephiroth smirked slightly. "I did not. You are merely easily distracted."

Zack opened his mouth to protest, then thought better of it and ignored the jibe. "Anyway, in my professional opinion, the best solution for this would be to go out and get laid."

Were he anyone else, Sephiroth would have sputtered indignantly. However, he simply looked up from his paper work calmly, one eyebrow raised. "And how did you come to this conclusion?"

"Sex relieves stress," Zack stated matter-of-factly, "and my guess is that you're being distracted by some_one_, rather than some_thing_," he finished with his typical "I'm planning something, and you have no clue what it is, but you'd better watch your back" grin. "So, what do you think of Spiky?"

Sephiroth stared at his friend bemusedly. "You go from suggesting that I find and fornicate with someone to asking my opinion of your young friend within the same breath?"

His only answer was the grin widening and the eyes sparkling with mischief. "C'mon, answer the question!"

Sephiroth sighed again. He knew Zack well enough to know that he'd never get a straight answer out of the man if he didn't want to give it. "Strife is a strong and capable young man, and had he not failed the psych test, he would have made a good SOLDIER."

The lieutenant general pouted. "That's not what I meant. What do you think of him as a person?"

There was a long silence, punctuated only by the soft scratching of a pen or the rustling of paper as Sephiroth contemplated Zack's question. If he was honest with himself, he wasn't sure what he thought of the blond, spiky-haired youth. Being raised in a lab did horrors for one's ability to comprehend and identify emotions. All he knew was that whenever he saw the blonde, he felt an indescribable sort of longing, a deep warmth that spread from his chest to every part of him, along with an urge to smile. Even ignoring Zack's less-than-subtle insinuations, Sephiroth had come to acknowledge the desire he had for the young man, but it was entirely different, as well as far stronger, than what he had once felt for Genesis, who had been his only constant sexual partner. Zack, being the faithful friend he was, had once tried to explain to him the difference between lust and love, and Sephiroth felt that he was slowly coming to realize it through the person that was Cloud Strife.

"He is a good person," Sephiroth finally said. "You are a sound judge, it seems, when it comes to choosing friends."

Zack's grin faltered nearly imperceptibly before returning to its usual gleefulness. "Well, it's been great talking to you, Seph, but I gotta meeting with Tuesti. Why they're making me meet with the Urban Development executive, I have no clue, but who am I to complain, huh? Catch ya later, Seph!" Whistling a tune that sounded vaguely like the ridiculous theme song some composer had created for the war hero, Zack strode confidently through the outer office, gave a cheery wave to Levine who glared at him fiercely, and pranced (again, yes, _pranced_) out the door.

Sephiroth stared for a few seconds before returning to his work. He had already resigned himself to the fact that he would never understand the mystery that was Zack Fair.

* * *

Cloud Strife, ShinRa Army trooper, native of Nibelheim, age 16, was having a rather difficult conflict in his mind. On one side, there is a love-struck boy that believed all that Disney crap about everything working out with the power of love, aka Cloud A. On the other, there was a more realistic, if not cynical, young man that knew that life was harsh and no amount of love and rainbows mattered when there was the possibility of being faced with a 7-foot long sword and imminent death, aka Cloud B.

_Tell him_, Cloud A repeated for the millionth time. _There's always a possibility that he feels the same way, you know._

_And once again, he is a freaking war hero, whereas you are a measly trooper. Why would he remember your face among thousands, anyway?_ Cloud B argued.

_Zack introduced you, remember? _Cloud A retorted. _You guys are pretty good buddies! Besides, you're at the top of your class! He must know about potential SOLDIERs, right? Isn't that his job?_

_Again with the war hero stuff! Even if you could get on his good side, the closest anyone's ever gotten to him was Zack! And you don't want just that level of affection, do you? You want him to divest all clothing on both your persons, slam you against the nearest flat surface, and make sweet love to you while whispering desperate love confessions in your ear, is that right?_

Cloud groaned aloud, shutting off the protesting voices in his head. He really needed to control himself better in public, and those images were definitely not helping with controlling his crazy teenage libido.

Yes, Cloud Strife, poor, insignificant, little Cloud Strife, was in love with the most famous, most admired, most celebrated man on Gaia, the great General Sephiroth. And it was driving him completely insane. Being Zack's best friend put him in much closer proximity to the general than any other trooper could ever hope for. However, it was exactly this proximity that caused his current predicament. He didn't blame Zack at all, but were it not for him, Cloud could be like all the other starry-eyed cadets, mournfully longing for something impossible. Damn the circumstances for giving him such a wild hope. Damn it all.

"You, laddie! You with the blond spikes! Might yeh spare a moment?" A squeaky, heavily accented voice interrupted his thoughts. He glanced toward the source of the somewhat annoying tone, eyes resting on a small, waving figure sitting in a sort of gay looking booth with a sign that cheerfully proclaimed "Fortunes told here!"

Cloud warily approached the booth. Normally, he would've sped past such an ostentatious display, but the small figure had singled him out, and he was a nice person. Stopping in front of the booth, he realized that the small figure was a diminutive, cartoon-ish cat-thing, with a small crown perched on his head at an odd angle. "Er…you, uh, called me?" The blonde was definitely confused at this point. Did cats tell fortunes? More importantly, did cats even _talk?_

"Why, yes, I did, laddie! You looked real down, so I figured yeh'd like some cheerin' up, eh?" The cat-thing grinned, bouncing slightly on top of the large, stuffed moogle he…it sat on.

Cloud cocked an eyebrow. This was getting increasingly strange. Plus, he really wanted to get back to ShinRa so he could curl up in the corner of his room and angst and write crappy emo poetry about unrequited love. Because Cloud is the undisputed prince of emo-ness. He started to respond politely. "Um…thanks, but I really gotta – "

"Ah, c'mon! Tell me what it is! Cait here'll have whatcha need fer anythin'!" There was the creepy grin again.

Cloud sighed. He definitely wasn't going to be able to get out of this without giving some information. "Well," he started, choosing his words carefully, "I really like this..." He paused, before figuring he might as well be honest. Not like a toy cat-thing would be prejudiced. "This guy. But I'm not sure…well…he doesn't like me back. That's all, I guess."

The cat-thing (it called itself Cait?) grinned wider. "Well, laddie, there's a problem easy solved! All ya need's a love spell, ain't it? And Cait Sith 'ere has plenty o' love spells!"

Cloud sputtered, even as he watched the toy cat rummage around the back of his…its booth. "Wait, what? I don't want a – !"

"Ah, don't worry, laddie! I'll even give it to ya free o' charge! Anythin' to help out a fellow in need, eh? Now then, yeh'll be wantin' the one that'll make one person love ya specifically, eh? 'Ere's the one, right 'ere!" The cat-thing held out what looked like one of those sugar packets they had at restaurants, except with the words _Cait's Love Mix_ printed on it in pink, curly script. "Ya just mix it into their drink, confess yer true love ta them, seal it up with a kiss, and they'll be head over heels with ya!"

The blond trooper took the questionable substance. "Does it…last?" he asked hesitantly, silently resolving to toss the stuff into the first trash can he saw.

Cait Sith, or so it called itself, giggled madly. "Oh, it wears off with a night's sleep! But that'll be enough to suit your purposes, eh? Tata!" Ignoring Cloud's sputtering protests, the toy cat shooed him off with a cheery wave.

* * *

In a fancily decorated office, only three floors above the General's, Zack Fair and Reeve Tuesti shared a high five.

* * *

Within seconds of walking through the front door of the ShinRa building, Cloud was ZackAttacked™.

"Zack……need…air…" the blonde managed to gasp through his best friend's stranglehold around his neck.

The Lieutenant General beamed and gave one last squeeze before releasing the younger male and immediately started ranting. "Heya, Spiky, what's up? How was your trip around Midgar? Did you have fun? Did you remember not to talk to strangers? Did you look both ways before crossing the street? Do you still have your wallet? No one bumped into you, did they? You know, one time, I was just minding my own business and trying to get back up to the plate when this brat bumps into me and steals my wallet! It took me ages to find him again, and the guys around the market were no help at all! I didn't even get to lecture him about it! I mean, Aerith wouldn't let me, but you know I – "

"Zack, I'm fine, everything was great, and I had fun, now shut up." Being able to interrupt him without fear of punishment was one of the very useful privileges of being Zack's friend, and one that Cloud took every advantage to use.

At his command, Zack stopped talking and smiled brightly. "So, anyway, I was thinking, since it's your birthday and you have the day off, you wanna come up to my room for dinner? We could have a little party! I'll buy a cake and everything, how about it?"

Cloud's heart skipped a few beats in panic. Zack's room was shared with Sephiroth. And he _really_ did not feel like dealing with Sephiroth. Not today. Hell, not for the next 50 years if he could manage it.

"Um…I'm not sure, I think I might've had something scheduled early tomorrow –" ARGH. There it was. That stupid puppy expression that made him cave _every single time_. Well, it wouldn't work this time. There was no way he was giving in. Nope. Never. Oh, crap, were those _tears?_ "Ugh, fine, I'll be there once I manage to shower," Cloud finally responded, still very reluctant.

Zack's eyes lit up instantly. "Promise?"

Cloud waved him off, walking away. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Once in the safe confines of the elevator, he sighed. What on earth had he gotten himself into?

* * *

Sephiroth was on the verge of having a very un-Sephiroth-like panic attack.

He had taken no more than three steps down the hallway that contained his and Zack's shared suite when his enhanced senses had been assaulted by the aroma of freshly baked cookies. This alone triggered an instant fight-or-flight response, dashing down the hallway with the sudden adrenaline rush. The first day he had met Zack, attempting to mimic his mother's stew recipe for Angeal, there had been a cataclysmic eruption from the pot he was stirring, the greenish slop flying everywhere, instantly rotting all wooden surfaces it came into contact with. From that day forward, he had resolved to do everything in his power to keep the man away from the kitchen. Yet now, there was the smell of cookies coming from his apartment, with no acrid burning smell to be detected. Had Zack invited a girl over? No, the only other allowed in their apartment was – His thoughts instantly disintegrated, his heart gave a funny leap that he couldn't identify, and his hand froze inches from entering the last digit on the keypad lock.

Of course. Hadn't he heard Zack rant for the past week about plans for "Spiky's" birthday?

After setting his neutral, calm, "I don't give a fuck" expression in perfect order, he hit the last button and opened the door.

* * *

"God, Zack, I still can't believe you're making me bake cookies for my own birthday party. That's, like, against the ancient laws governing the ways of partying. 'Thou shalt not force the subject of partying to provide his/her own snacks/refreshments' or some such shit," Cloud grumbled for the _n_th time as he checked the oven again. Hmm, could probably still use a minute or so.

Zack snickered. "Would you rather I kill us all with my radioactive creations?"

The blonde shuddered at the thought, and then rolled his eyes exasperatedly. "Couldn't you have ordered some, like the cake?" He opened the oven and slid the cookie sheet out, hands covered in oven mitts far too large.

"Yeah, but I like yours better! You put more chocolate!" The lieutenant general bounced to his young friend's side, happily inhaling the intoxicating scent. "Mmmm, that smells soooo goooood…" He grabbed one instantly, then dropped it with a yelp and nursed his burnt fingers.

Cloud started snickering, but was instantly sobered by the door opening.

Zack, on the other hand, perked up instantaneously. "Seeeeeeeeph!" he sang, sprinting full speed toward the door with arms outstretched.

Sephiroth, after avoiding the incoming ZackAttack™, registering that nothing was burning, and seeing that the one that baked the cookies was indeed none other than Cloud Strife, allowed himself a small smirk at his second, who was currently sprawled across the floor. "Never announce your presence to an enemy if you expect to succeed in an assault, Lieutenant."

Zack blew a very undignified raspberry in response. "Fuck you, Seph. Just cuz you're faster than me doesn't mean I won't get you someday. No one avoids ZackAttacks™ for long!" He sat up with a goofy grin.

Cloud almost laughed at his friend's embarrassment, then realized that _Sephiroth_ was in the room and took a few calming breaths to repress the rising anxiety. When the general turned his way, he snapped into a formal salute. "Sir!"

Sephiroth was smiling slightly. "At ease, Strife," he said, nodding in acknowledgement.

The blonde relaxed his stance and returned the expression shyly. His thoughts randomly trailed to the supposed love spell that he had neglected to throw out. Maybe – He choked the thought off before it took root.

* * *

For Sephiroth, seeing the young man again had affirmed his suspicions of his own feelings. There was the same rushing warmth, and there was the inexplicable urge to throw all caution and decorum to the winds and jump the boy. _You want him!_ a rather sing-song voice in his mind that sounded suspiciously like Zack exclaimed. _You loooooooove him! You want to marry him! You want him to bear your children!_ Yes, that did sound remarkably like Zack.

Before he could kill the voice in the bloodiest way imaginable, the real Zack spoke up. "Hey, Spike, how about something to drink, huh?"

Cloud stared at his best friend incredulously. "You're making me serve you drinks in your own suite? At _my_ own birthday party? Isn't that another violation of the ancient laws or something? 'Thou shalt not make the subject of partying serve drinks'?" Oh, dammit. There were the puppy eyes again. Do not give in, do not give in, do not –

"Bastard," he grumbled just loud enough for Zack to hear as he stalked off into the kitchen.

* * *

Cloud sighed as he poured drinks, soda for himself and Zack (non-caffeinated of course) and a simple glass of water for the general. His thoughts once again turned toward the "love mix". If he was going to use it, now would likely be the only chance he'd get. After a minute or two of quiet deliberation, he sighed, inwardly cursing himself for being a superstitious idiot, and ripped open the packet, pouring the powdery white stuff into the water glass.

* * *

While this was happening, Zack was leering at his silver-haired friend, repeating the exact words that had earlier been said in aforementioned friend's mind.

"You want him."

An impatient twitch. The leer grew.

"You loooooooove him!"

More of a spasm this time. "Zack…" The sound of inane cackling.

"You want to marry him!"

A glare, fingers fisting to keep from strangling his best friend. "Zackary Fair…" The cackling became hysterical giggles.

"You want him to bear your children!"

Ah, there was the Look. The Look that froze everything it came into contact with, that scared even President Shinra shitless. But not Zack. Having been on its receiving end countless times, Zack had long since grown immune to the effects of the Look. But, merely to placate his friend, he managed to tone down his giggles into a calm grin.

"Hey, I don't blame you, he's a pretty kid. I'm straight, and I can see that much."

The Look abated and was replaced by a more thoughtful expression. There was no need to speak. Zack, clumsy and idiotic he might be, was very good at reading faces. They could hold entire conversations without him saying a word.

The grin subsided a little and became more serious. "You really do like him a lot. I can see that much. And just because I know you're gonna ask, I don't mind at all." Sephiroth glanced at him bemusedly at this. Zack gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it! Besides, did I not say you need to get laid?" The expression turned more annoyed at this. "C'mon, Seph, I know you wanna!" It was getting dangerously close to the Look again. "Fine, fine, geez. If it's any consolation, he definitely lo–"

They were interrupted by the kitchen door opening and Cloud walking out with three glasses. "Here's your stupid drink, dumbass. Hope you choke on it and die."

Zack grinned widely. "Thanks, Spiky, I love you too!"

Sephiroth amused himself with the odd display as he sipped his water. Hmm, oddly sweet. Maybe one of the cadets had been tampering with the water supply again. No matter, he figured, not noticing Cloud's intent gaze on him.

After a few minutes of relaxing on the couch and bantering lightly between the three of them, Zack stood up happily. "Now, are we gonna have a party or what?"

* * *

All in all, it was much better than it could have been. Zack had only insisted on 32 rounds of DDR instead of his usual 57, all of which he lost to the much more coordinated Sephiroth and Cloud. Afterwards, dinner ended up to be delivered pizza, which they had all happily consumed after so much lost energy. The cake was topped with 16 sparklers, instead of traditional candles, that they had no choice but to wait for five minutes or so to burn out. The cake itself was delicious. Even Sephiroth, who wasn't a fan of sweets, attested to that. One cake fight and twenty-ish more songs on DDR later, they settled down with milk and Cloud's cookies to watch a new movie called Advent Children, in which the main characters looked scarily familiar. After a small tussle over a remark that Zack had made about what kind of present movie Sephiroth could give movie Cloud that resulted in both actual men turning away from each other and flushing, Zack suddenly and loudly excused himself to make a phone call at nearly midnight, leaving Cloud and Sephiroth alone to watch movie Cloud speed down an empty road pointlessly on his motorcycle in silence.

Cloud was remembering Cait Sith's instructions. _"Ya just mix it into their drink, confess yer true love ta them, seal it up with a kiss, and they'll be head over heels with ya!"_ He had mixed the…stuff into Sephiroth's drink, supposedly all he needed to do was confess his feelings and kiss the guy, the thought of which already made him feel like mushy stuff inside. And not in the good way either. It was the scary, nerve-wracking, DO NOT WANT way. But Cloud Strife, once set on something, would pursue it to the very end.

"Um…" _Dammit, could you _be _less eloquent?_ "Si – Sephiroth?" _Yeah, that's right, stutter like the blushing virgin you are. God, love's a bitch._

The general turned toward him, a somewhat curious expression adorning his features. "Yes, Cloud?"

The blonde's heart leapt at the sound of his name coming from that smooth, lovely baritone. He shoved the feeling away and tried to decide how to phrase his words. Should he be subtle about it, maybe more direct, or maybe – _Oh, fuck it._

"I love you." There it was. The truth, out in the open. "I…I've loved you for ages. I mean, not like the others who just fantasize about you. I…I really, really want to be with you. And…I understand if…if you don't want to, of course. I just…thought you should know." Then, before he could lose his nerve, Cloud propped himself up and pecked Sephiroth lightly on the lips before turning away, his face a bright, flaming red.

* * *

The general had no idea how to respond. He had gotten an outright confession of love from a young man that _he _loved, and a kiss with it, too. And now, every fiber of his being screamed _KISS HIM,_ but he didn't want to scare the boy. Then he remembered Zack's repeated advice to him of _just go with it_, and figured that if Cloud freaked out, it wouldn't he his fault.

* * *

Cloud was mortified. He'd done it, and nothing had happened. He'd been a complete idiot and mixed a mystery powder into the general's drink, hoping it was a _love spell_, of all things. He was such an _idiot!_ That toy cat-thing was obviously some kind of con artist. Maybe the stuff was poison of some sort. Maybe he'd poisoned the general! _Shit shit shit shit SHI–!_ Out of nowhere, his arm had been grabbed, he'd been spun around, and now Sephiroth's lips were on his.

His first thought was '_I have GOT to be dreaming_'. But then, Sephiroth's tongue was coaxing his mouth open, and he decided that if it was a dream, he'd better get the most out of it. He parted his lips and let the older man's tongue battle his into submission. Cloud closed his eyes and moaned softly into Sephiroth's mouth. This felt far too good to be a dream.

When they finally parted for breath, the general's eyes burned green with mako reacting to his lust. He wasted no time in scooping the young blonde into his arms and carrying the boy to his room.

* * *

Zack grinned at the breathy moans and gasps he heard from his friend's room. He dialed Reeve's number. Not even one full ring later, and there was an answer.

"Did it work?" Mischievous glee was obvious in the executive's voice.

"Yup! And they're at it already! You owe me a thousand gil," Zack winced, then giggled slightly at the scream of "SEPHIROTH!" he heard from the other room.

There was a sigh on the other line. "Damn. Well, at least I did my good deed for the day."

Zack beamed. "You got it, Tuesti."

* * *

Sephiroth gently cradled the sleeping figure. "I love you, Cloud," he whispered, not wanting to wake the boy.

Cloud, not fully asleep, heard this and tried his best to hold back tears. Just one night of happiness. It'd all be gone in the morning.

* * *

Sephiroth stretched as he woke, faintly confused as to why he was nude. Then he remembered and smiled. He gently shook the sleeping figure beside him. "Cloud. Cloud, wake up."

The blonde shook his head and buried his head deeper into his pillow.

The general made sure to keep from rolling his eyes like a petulant child. "Come, Cloud, wake up."

Another shake of the head. "Don' wanna…" he murmured sleepily.

Sephiroth very nearly did roll his eyes. "And why not?"

Another sleepy response. "'M having a good dream…"

He smiled warmly. "What are you dreaming about?"

Cloud sighed into his pillow. "You loved me in the dream," he whispered almost inaudibly.

Sephiroth, with his enhanced ears, picked up the soft response. He cocked his head. "I love you outside of the dream as well, Cloud."

The head shaking and response was much more awake this time. "No, you don't. You never did. It was some spell from some stupid fortune teller."

The general was now very confused. "Spell? Fortune teller? Cloud, explain, please."

If his face were not buried in the pillow, it would have been tomato red. He slowly explained about the cat-thing in Wall Market and its instructions. "And it worked, which means you don't love me anymore. It wears off with a night's sleep. Everything's back to normal." Sephiroth would go back to being the untouchable general, and he would go back to being a love-struck trooper, only now he'd have a memory instead of a fantasy. It was the most he had dared hope for.

Then, Sephiroth began to laugh. It was an amazing thing, the seemingly cold war hero laughing in amusement. It was truly a beautiful sound. After the laughter died down, the general spoke. "You never needed a spell to make me fall in love with you. I had done that on my own."

Cloud finally looked up, shock and disbelief on his face, yet he saw complete love and sincerity in those lovely, mako green eyes. His shock vanished to be replaced by a smile, an expression of the most happiness he'd ever had in his lifetime, as he threw himself at his new lover.

* * *

It was close to noon on the following Saturday. Cloud was once again walking the streets of Midgar, though this time, with a much happier expression and entirely different thoughts buzzing through his head. Then, he heard that squeaky, accented voice again.

"So I take it everything worked out for yeh?" There was the toy cat-thing on its stuffed moogle, bright rainbow-y booth still the same as last time.

Cloud smiled slightly as he walked over. "Yeah…What was that stuff you gave me, anyway?"

Cait Sith waved a hand dismissively. "Just a pinch o' powder sugar, laddie! Nothin' harmful at all!" It grinned its toy cat grin again. "So, yeh're all happy now, eh? 'M glad fer ya!"

Cloud smiled, partly out of relief. It would have sucked if he'd accidentally poisoned his lover. "Yeah, thanks." He bit his lip, as if considering something, then left some gil along with a note before walking away with a wave.

Cait Sith picked up the gil and counted it up. A thousand gil? That would pay his debt to Zack easily enough! Then he read the note. The first part was written in long, elegant strokes, the second in small, neat print.

_Tuesti,_

_Give Zackary my sincere thanks._

**And punch him in the face a couple times, would you?**

_Sephiroth, _**Cloud Strife**

Back in his office, Reeve smiled. There was a message that he wouldn't mind passing along.

* * *

FINALLY DONE! This is by far the longest thing I've written yet. I realize that it's late, but I didn't start writing it until around noon on Cloud's birthday. I had a lot of fun writing this. Somehow, I could totally picture Sephiroth and Cloud being awesome at DDR. XD

**I am holding Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, Vincent, and Genesis hostage. Now review, or I will tie them up outside and leave them to be glomped to death by the fangirls. I swear, I'll do it!**


End file.
